Haunted
by Natalie Ryan
Summary: A one-shot that I have written a while back and it is connected to Deeks' 5th year anniversary with the team. Well as official as it gets because Hetty gave him the document shortly afterwards, but I still think that April 6th is the anniversary. NCIS Los Angeles and its characters belong to Shane Brennan and CBS. Enjoy


Haunted (A little bit of different anniversary)

 **I went through my Word documents that were part of the folder "FAN FICTION" in which I have all of my fan fics, today and I found this story that I wrote on 8** **th** **of April and I saved it, but I forgot about it. It was inspired by the unofficial anniversary of Densi (6** **th** **of April) and the investigation on Deeks. I made some changes in it but I think that my original idea is still intact. It's a one shot and I'm not planning on continuing it because I don't think that I'll be able to think of any crime that Deeks would do, albeit I think that if Deeks committed something that was against the rules, he did it because he thought it was right. I hope you'll like it.**

 _The loneliest people are the kindest. The saddest people are the brightest. The most damaged people are the wisest._

Hetty had her Easter party as always in one of her many houses. She had a theme this year for the party. Every one of her agents was supposed to bring food or clothes that he/she wasn't wearing anymore. She wanted to give them to the homeless shelter she always donated to. She thought that if she could change the Easter to all those people that she could change the world. But, something wasn't right. Her favorite blonde liaison with the piercing blue eyes wasn't there with them. She noticed that he was quiet the whole time since he arrived to the party and he grimaced every time he tried to sit in a comfortable position. When he left her house she wondered what had caused him to act like that, but she couldn't find the reason. Mr. Deeks was still a mystery to her after all the years he spent on her team.

…

 **6** **th** **of April 2015**

He woke up with pains in his stomach. He had a bad feeling about today, but he never thought that the pain will be that enormous. He got up carefully, but as soon as he got out of the bed, his head started spinning. He eased himself on a chair, and waited for the dizziness to disappear. He forced himself to eat something, but the thought of food made him nauseous.

 _What's going on with me_ , he asked himself as he dressed and prepared for work.

He thought of how slow the last couple of weeks passed. He still wondered why the IAB department of the LAPD was investigating him, and he kept thinking about it every single day. He even made Kensi to stay away from him after Hetty told them the news. But, she was a woman that never went down without a fight, so she finally found her own way of dissarming him. He finally let her in his life again, but he made a mental note to himself, not to let go of the worry so easy. It was dangerous in cases when you thought that the things were over, but they were not. Not knowing is worse than knowing about it. It prolongues the torture of the soul. He had lost contact with himself and he wasn't sure why he still was working as a cop.

What was the point of saving lives, when you couldn't save your own?

He considered the thought of becoming a Federal Agent, since he found out about the investigation. But, he strained himself from that decision, because he knew if he became an agent now, that would mean that he had something to hide, and that he is running away from the force, which meant only one thing. That he is guilty of the thing they suspected he'd done it. And the last thing he wanted was to challenge them to think it was true, whatever they had on him.

He stood by the window, these thoughts circling in his head. He wished he could've had Kensi by his side, but she was undercover with Sam and Callen. No vacation for them, though. He recalled the first time they met, and how two years later they remembered exactly what they wore on their first unofficial date.

 **(Flashback)**

" _What was he wearing?"_

" _White T-shirt, red shorts, black socks._ _"_

" _And what was she wearing?"_

" _That's um… How possibly could I remember what was she wearing? (Looks at Kensi, smiling)_ _Black tank top, jeans, bag that goes across your shoulder, hair down- wavy._ _"_

 **(End of flashback)**

He was left alone. Well, not competely alone. He had his haunting thoughts to keep him company. That's when he remembered that they weren't supposed to go to work till Wednesday, because of the holiday.

He continued to look through the window as he remembered why the date was important to him.

It was 5 years since he met Kensi and the rest of the team. 5 wonderful years of joy, happines and love. He fell in love with her from the first time he saw her, and he knew from the very first second, that she was the woman of his life. They were official since Christmas, and he was grateful that he had her in his life. He couldn't help, but think how did he get so lucky? His whole life was mess, till he met Kensi and now, the threat on him and possibly on his career made the things worse.

He didn't know where they were going from now on, but he was happy at what he had now, at the moment. In their line of work, you needed miracle to stay alive and to love someone, who also happened to be your partner. You couldn't rely on your feeling of security. You needed to think for the moment, and to savor every bit of luck you got, since your life was at stake once you left your shell and charged into the world of the bad guys, as he was used to call them.

That day was 5 years since he joined the team. 5 years, 60 months, 260 weeks, 1826 days, 43824 hours and 2629440 seconds to the letter. That exact date in 2010 when Hetty gave him the job offer. He wondered why the hell the NCIS needed a liasion officer from the LAPD, but with the years that have gone so fast, he learned that with Hetty nothing was accidental. She picked her agents carefully, and though he wasn't an agent yet, he felt like she observed him for quite some time before she actually stepped in and offered him to be part of her team. He wasn't always welcomed, since he took over the vacant place of his predecssor Dominic Vail, that died shortly afterwards, but he managed to gain the trust of the team, and most of all he bonded with all of them. He considered every one of them as his family members.

He smiled at the moment when he and Sam fought in the MMA gym, undercover. He kicked Sam's ass, but he received some vicious kicks himself. It was one hell to start their time as colleagues and now it seemed like they were meant to meet.

…

 **-** **Office of Special Projects** **-**

Sam arrived after Callen, and he caught him reading the newspapers.

"G, what's up?"

"Nothing. Just reading the paper."

"You know what day it is?"

"The day after Easter?"

"It's been 5 years, G" Sam sighed when he said that and Callen immediately put the newspaper on the desk as realization dawned on his face.

"I almost forgot the date."

"I made sure that I would remember the date. I appreciate every year we get to spend with our favorite cop. And I got to like him."

"I never thought that you would say that."

"Believe me G it's tough on me to admit that. And don't you dare to tell Deeks that I said that."

"Deal. Speaking of the Devil, where is Deeks?"

"Hetty said she called him to show up at work today. He said that he'll be here ASAP, but no sign of him."

"I hope that he is better today. He looked like crap last night."

"You could say that, yes. But, the kid is bulletproof."

Callen was still sketchy when it came to Deeks' ability to handle the situation when it got tough, but he had to admit that Deeks was a great cop, and that one day he would make out a great agent, too.

It took Sam too much time to realize that Deeks was faithful and that he could count on him to cover his back, but the most important thing was that he thought of him as his little brother, now after all they've been through. Sam had a special place in his heart for the sympatic surfing goofball, that irritated him with his non-stop talking, but when he cracked one of those remarkable jokes, he wondered, _is there anything that you can't like about him_? Well the hair maybe. But, Sam started to like his hair, and understood that the hair was a part of Deeks as a person. He was finally letting the soft side of the SEAL persona to surface above the ground.

The fact is that Deeks always made them smile, and that he is a valuable asset made them appreciate the rare good moments more.

…

They weren't supposed to work that day, since it was the day after Easter, but he knew something came up the minute his phone buzzed. He took the phone and checked the caller ID. It was Hetty.

"Hetty."

"Hello, Mr. Deeks. How are you?"

"A little better."

"I was worried about you. You looked like you were in great pains last night."

Deeks stiffled a moan that almost escaped from his mouth. He took few deep breaths before he answered.

"Still hurts, but there's nothing that couple of Tylenols won't solve."

"You sure?"

"Yes."

"We have a case. I'm afraid that your short vacation ended, Mr. Deeks."

"I'll be there ASAP"

Deeks ended the call and he got up. Searing pain passed through his body, and he tried to remain stoic, but blackness slowly covered his eyes. He fell on the ground, hitting his head in the process. His body sagged like a punching bag, clutching his hands on his stomach.

…

They were worried, because Deeks didn't show up at work. It was almost one hour since Hetty told them Deeks should be there any minute.

Kensi was the most worried of all. It wasn't like Deeks to be late at work. She tried his cell few times, but didn't get an answer. She was on the edge.

She grabbed her jacket and stormed out of OPS.

…

He woke up with a stabbing pain in his head. He couldn't move. He felt like he was glued to the ground. His stomach hurt even more. He didn't know how much time has passed after he felt sick.

He was able to get up and to go to the bathroom where he vomited, and he lost consciousness again.

He went on and off of consciousness, and the pain wouldn't stop.

He could hear someone knocking on the door, but he couldn't reply to them. He wasn't able to open his eyes. He heard familiar voice calling his name, but he wasn't able to utter a word.

Everything went black again.

…

Kensi was practically screaming in Eric's ear to send an ambulance as she tried to find a pulse on a really pale Deeks on the bathroom floor.

"Deeks, wake up. Don't do this to me. Not today."

He briefly opened his eyes and smiled when he saw Kensi.

"Sugar bear, what are you doing here?"

"I was worried about you goof. You didn't return my phone calls. You told Hetty that you will come to OPS, but you were late."

"I was going to, but I couldn't make my stomach to stop hurting."

"The ambulance is on their way."

"Good."

Kensi cradled Deeks, as she remembered the fear she felt when she found him badly tortured in that body shop a year and a half ago. She could clearly see the pain on his face, but she refused to think of all the possible scenarios and what could possibly go wrong with her partner.

She followed the ambulance with the SRX. She notified the team. Kensi was hyper vigilant since the investigation was announced, and she could clearly see a car following her. She looked at the car in her rearview mirror, and she was certain it was the same car that followed her couple of weeks ago. The same woman was behind the wheel.

"What are you trying to accomplish?" Kensi commented out loud as she rang Callen.

"Kens, we are on our way to the hospital. What's wrong?"

"I've got tail."

"Who?"

"Rivera, the IAB woman."

"What does she want from you?"

"Don't know, but I will be sure to find out as soon as the ambulance drops Deeks off to the hospital."

"Okay. Be careful Kens."

"I will."

Kensi could see the woman turn left. She was gone, but not for long. She knew that she was going to be back.

…

He was in the ER for half an hour when the doctor came out of it to tell them what was going on.

"Hetty Lange?"

"It's me."

"I have some bad news for you. We did some analysis and we think that Mr. Deeks has appendicitis. It's a disease on the appendix. We are not sure what caused the disease, but we are lucky that the appendix isn't ruptured. However, we need to keep him overnight. He won't eat or drink anything in that time, but we will make sure to hydrate him by an intravenous drip. We need to reduce the spread of the infection in the abdomen, so he will be given antibiotics. We will do the appendectomy tomorrow morning."

"Thank you doctor." Said Hetty, in a low voice as she tried to keep her emotions in control.

"Can we see him?" asked Kensi, clearly agitated.

"Yes, you can, but try not to tire him. He is very weak now, so he needs rest."

They all entered Deeks' room. He was wide awake when they came, and he had a tired smile on his face as he saw them all gathered.

"Hey Deeks."

"Hey Sam."

"Happy fifth anniversary."

"Thanks."

Deeks was surprised to hear that Sam remembered the date.

"Hang in there Deeks." Said Callen, fighting to control his feelings.

They were worried about him, and their faces told the story of a family that hovered over an ill family member. They came to accept him that they wondered what would be if something bad happened to him. Today was supposed to be just a normal day at OPS; instead it turned out to be filled with sadness. But, it was too early for prognosis, so they decided that they need to animate Deeks, and keep him in good mood.

…

The next morning the doctor made his final checks before he explained the procedure to Deeks. He left the nurses to prepare him for surgery, as he headed for the waiting area to deliver the news about the appendectomy he was about to perform.

When he saw the three agents and the old woman scattered around the waiting area, the doctor's first thought was that the man that was about to go in surgery was a very lucky man. He had people that loved him and cared about him. They were willing to give their live for him. They were tight-knit as a family, and he wished he had a family like theirs. But, now wasn't the time or the place to fantasize about what he wanted from life. Now, it was time to save a young man's life and to bring his family some peace.

Hetty woke up as she sensed his presence. She was careful not to wake the others. They spend the night in the hospital awake and they needed rest.

"We are ready to proceed the appendectomy Ms. Lange." Said the doctor "I need you to know that Mr. Deeks' condition was stable during the night, there is still a risk that we need to take into account. We got lucky that his appendix isn't ruptured, so the risk is about 3 to 10%. There might still be some complications, but I think that everything will go well. The recovery period in the hospital is between few hours to few days, it depends. I will be able to tell you more after the surgery. Now, if you'll excuse me, Mr. Deeks needs to be prepared for surgery."

The doctor left Hetty in the hallway, as he disappeared from her view.

…

Callen never meant for this to happen. He already had plans for celebration when Kensi called him and told him that Deeks wasn't feeling well. He wasn't much of a planning guy, but with a little help he thought he could make the difference and show Deeks how much he and the rest of the team cared about him.

He was tired of waiting in the hall so he went to the cafeteria. Sam followed him, and Kensi got out of the hospital. She disliked hospitals and she hated it every time she needed to be there. A flashback from the day Deeks was shot 4 years prior came to her mind, but she quickly wavered that thought. She needed to think positive. _Everything will be just fine, Kens_ , she reminded herself. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. When she opened her eyes she noticed Lt. Bates coming to the entrance.

He passed her on his way in, but he uttered just a shy "Hello agent Blye" before he entered the building. His was serious and angry.

…

Lt. Bates found Hetty in the waiting room and slumped in the chair next to her.

"You look exhausted Henrietta."

"You too, Roger. What brings you here?"

"Deeks. And the investigation the IAB opened on him. I just found about it. When were you planning on telling me?"

"I though you knew."

"Well, I didn't know. Anyway, I came here to tell you that no matter what, I'll protect the kid."

"What happened to you Roger? Did you hit your head somewhere on the road to the hospital? The last time I saw you you thought that he wasn't a part from the NCIS, leave alone the LAPD."

"I changed my mind that very day Hetty. He is a smart kid. And he is one hell of a cop, too."

"I know. That's why I chose him to be part from my slightly dysfunctional family 5 years ago."

Bates smiled at the last comment Hetty made. They both turned their heads when they heard the door from the OR open.

…

The doctor left the operating room to deliver them the good news.

"It was a successful surgery Ms. Lange. We removed the appendix without any damage to the other organs. Mr. Deeks needs to spend few days in the hospital to recover. He is now at post anesthesia care unit, so he can be monitored closely if there are some after surgery complications. The anesthesia should wear off in few hours. After that he will be transferred to a regular room."

"Thanks again doctor."

"It's my job to save lives Ms. Lange. You don't have to thank me."

…

The next few days passed very quickly. Every agent took turns in sitting with Deeks, and reviving memories from their craziest assignments.

Kensi helped him sit on the edge of the bed. And she helped him during the walks in the hospital yard, several times a day. The doctor said that no matter how much the pain Deeks had, he needed to move around so he could heal faster.

It came the time when he was able to leave the hospital.

"How are you today Mr. Deeks?"

"I feel a little better thanks."

"I have decided to let you go home."

"Great."

"But, I have some advice for you. After you leave this room you have to promise me that you will limit your physical activity. Do not lift any heavy objects that can harm you. Do you understand?"

"Yes."

"You will need to change your diet, because this was not a routine surgery and this is not an ordinary condition."

"Okay, I understand that, too."

"Your recovery will be four to six weeks. You can go back to work in a couple of weeks, but remember what I said earlier, no physical activity. If you are about to go on the field, it should be limited. Some birdie told me that you are a surfer. I prohibit you to surf."

"Yes, Captain Doctor."

"Take care of yourself Mr. Deeks." Said the doctor, and left the room.

"I guess you are confined to me Deeks."

"I will enjoy our time together Kens, since we weren't able to see each other much these past week."

"It depends of what you define as 'seeing each other' Deeks."

"Now, who has dirty mind Kens?"

…


End file.
